Friday, 25 March 2016

Here are some old photos of Buster with kittens, Daisy and Dorah when they first arrived. He used to groom them.

Buster has been a character. I love him. He's on Prozac (flueoxetine) to settle him down. It seems to have done so. There was a time when he was spraying in frustration, when we didn't let him out at night. That stopped. I found him 3km up the road once upon a time. He likes to travel. He has been 'doctored' as my 92-year-old client calls it! (I love her!)

He's been chasing the girls, Annie just whacks back at him, as does Daisy. Daize is 7 lbs, the other 3 are about 12+ and Dorah could stand up for herself, but she's just being a victim. I swear, I've seen this in my students.
She is scared, got twitchies, and cowers in fear most of the time Buster is around. Daisy and Annabelle know how to read him, and understand when he is ready to battle or not.

Buster's been on Prozac (flueoxetine) for months and it does seem to calm him.
Buster is (I think) jealous of them. He trees them, when they are outdoors. But Daisy is jealous of him, too. I was grooming Buster, and she hopped down from a chair, and came right between us.
Dorah has been peeing upstairs, rather than downstairs in the litter box. She's afraid to go downstairs, where Buster sleeps in the day as he chases her.

Buster was taken into the Cat's Meow for a week's respite. We dropped him off at the 'spa' as we call it. He was affectionate, loving with me, and David (the co-owner) we both picked him up and snuggled him. Buster knew what he was in for and paced the room. He won't be happy. He needs to roam. There is a door, where he can sit outside.

After 3 days in the vet hospital, Dorah came home. She's on Prozac now. She is much calmer. I don't know if it the meds, or just Buster's absence. She did cower under the bedside table for a few hours.
We'll have to figure out what to do. Buster's time out is for a week.

If we can keep Buster there for two weeks... in the hotel, maybe he'll calm down.
Dorah is managing her cystitis. She's still twitchy and I'm having trouble getting her to take her meds.JB has bought over-the-counter Feliway at the pet store. You plug it into the wall socket.

We'll try Buster back next week, with the pheromone spray after that. We shall see. I am trying not to cry, or think of it. One day at a time. This we plug into the wall. It works like an air freshener. We shall see.
We're going to offer Buster for adoption to test the waters, if nothing changes. The pheromones should help the girls, as well. Daisy and Annie have some hearty debates!

8 comments:

I surely hope things work out for all and peace is regained. You simply can't tolerate domestic fear nor urinating in areas outside the litter box. Like you, I would resort to rehoming Buster. My sympathy for the situation, Jennifer.

I hope things are better upon Buster's return. He might just feel like the newcomer for a while and hopefully that will kickstart his feeling like he's lower on the totem pole.

I tried the plugin when I had my son's cats bullying my older guys and it didn't help them. The cats have to be in the room of the the pheromones in order for them to be effective. A lot of people swear by them though. Thy them both with the manual spray on a loosely-tied bandana. They're both stressed in their own way and would both benefit from it. I sure hope it all works out for them.

Hari OMOh my - such a decision to be faced, but I think a wise one to have as the backup if all else fails. Could be that Buster just needs to be a one-person cat... holding you in thoughts as you work this through... am over at Edinburgh again for a couple of weeks - may be 'absent' here and there... YAM xx

Oh gosh! They're both on Prozac? That's so interesting. I remember being surprised when my granddog had to be put on human type medicine for his epilepsy too. I'm so sorry you're all having such a difficult time.